Oh. My. Days! Look at these!

[Jack]

It's almost 1am and I can't sleep.  That usually means some YouTube time exploring anything van life related.  I don't expect these vehicles to be new to some folks (like Mike) but I am drooling over their existence!  My favorite is #3 in the countdown - The Earthroamer XV-LTS.  Two gas tanks that hold a combined 95 gallons?  Jenkies!  It's perfect.  What kind of MPG do these kinds of vehicles get?

I've been more of a hermit than I realized over these last dozen or so years.  What the heck else have I been missing out on?

 

[HalfShadows]

About 8-9 MPG

 

[wagoneer]

These are all really fantastic, realistic? Not so much. Millionaire ,ostentatious, high maintenance. Nice fantasy though. I feel more at home in my 8 ft CO truck camper.

 

[Jack]

About 8-9 MPG

...... really?   That's it?  Then what's the point?  No wonder it needs a 95 gallon gas capacity.  

As wagoneer said, these may seem fantastic (especially when you've never heard of such things) but they just aren't realistic.

Question:  The technology must exist to make extremely fuel efficient vehicles.  With all the advances we have today, especially with all the "save the earth" and "global warming" rhetoric going on, where is it?  Surely it exists. Why on earth hasn't it been done?

 

[ByeBye]

Folks buying 6 or 7 digit rigs look at fuel/mpg in terms of logistics only. Reliability and fuel/parts availability are top priorities not greenhouse emissions. Tbh, it's such a small market segment the carbon footprint of these isn't even a drop in the bucket.

I started out look at roamer type vehicles and am looking at making my rig a poor man's version, eventually. I get 10-16 mpg depending on load and speed.

 

[HalfShadows]

LOL I get 11mpg on my poor mans roamer, and that is Highway MPG.. I don't fear the pump. I don't have to drive to work everyday either. It is not like I am going to drive 24/7 spewing exhaust around the country. Drive a li'l bit then snatch some beautiful scenery for weeks. I have a budget for my build and it is certainly less than a new Transit, Pro Master, Savannah, or the Sprinter.  Plus where they top me on MPG I top them on Boon Docking where they cannot go. And I have Hell of a Solar System. Inexpensive Maintenance costs etc, etc, etc.

 

[highdesertranger]

the MPG is directly related to the weight. if you are heavy it takes a lot of power to propel the vehicle, a lot of power = a lot of fuel used. my buddy has a Tiger which is at the low end of these vehicles his is a Chevy he gets around 15MPG. he should be at the next RTR, he was there 2 years ago. here's a link for Tiger,

http://www.tigervehicles.com/

highdesertranger

 

[Jack]

Now I understand why, every time I've been in an RV, I felt like the interiors were made of thin wood and plastic.  They always look and feel as cheap as Kmart but it must be to save on weight.  It makes sense now.  

I knew weight played a role but never really understood the extent of it until now.  I want the best MPG possible so I'm really glad I'm researching all of this before I buy.  I'm going to conserve on the weight of the actual build so I can allow for the weight on the necessary things that matter the most in order to maximize MPG. 

I know my "revelations" must be eye-rolling common sense info and nothing new to folks here.  Like I said, my skills are in different areas.  My last vehicle was a brand new 1993 Saturn SL2!  But I took phenomenal care of that car and, when I sold it, I got 40% more than the Blue Book Value.

 

[John61CT]

It makes no sense at all to maximize MPG as a top priority

unless you are driving long distances very frequently.

Yes for a commuter car.

But personally, I can go many months without driving my home 1000 miles, just not worth all the sacrifices high MPG requires.

The difference between 10mpg and 33.3mpg would be under $70 / month, and the big more comfortable rig saves way more than that in maintenance / repairs running costs.

Not to mention the Green value of using a decades old vehicle and making it last decades more, as opposed to having to scrap a sh1tbox every 5-10 years.

Best solution of course, is a big rig for dwelling that also carries or tows a tiny car for the commuting / errands.

 

[bullfrog]

Beyween my Suzuki Samurai and Radmini I have a hard time using the tank of gas in my Jeep camper before it goes bad!

 

[Jeffrey Lee]

Like the M1 Abrams battle tank, their fuel economy is measured in gallons-per-mile ...  

 

[DannyB1954]

Some live out of a Toyota Prius. They get pretty good fuel economy. It will always be a balance between economy and comfort. Like HDR said it is a matter of physics. Some people travel the world with just a back pack and a sleeping bag. The more you need, the more it will cost to move it.

Back in the day of high fuel prices, Many people spent thousands to save hundreds. The older gas gusslers were dirt cheap. If you consider that in an RV the variance between rigs is maybe 10 miles per gallon. So how many gallons will $60,000 buy? If you drove 10,000 miles a year, and got 10 miles per gallon instead of 20mpg the difference would be 500 gallons. 10,000 /20 =500, 10,000/10= 1,000. At $4 a gallon that would be a difference of $2,000. So if you spent $60,000 to get the latest and greatest instead of $20,000 for a less efficient rig, it would only take you about 20 years for the higher MPG vehicle to start to pay off, (40,000 / 2000). I don't think most people travel 10,000 miles in their RV every year.

 

[Jack]

It makes no sense at all to maximize MPG as a top priority

unless you are driving long distances very frequently.

I understand why you would think this way but, for me, it makes perfect sense.  My life has existed within a 25 mile radius for over a decade.  Even that's a generous statement because I've spent the majority of that time in my studio apartment.  I'm working to change my life from being a sedentary, non-participating hermit to a steady, cross-country traveler.  This is exactly why I think about MPG.  For at least a year, I want to see the U.S.  I mean really see it and all that it has to offer.  
When I feel I've had enough of traveling, I'll choose an area and live out of my van while driving substantially less.  If necessary, that's when I'll go all out on the build and the comforts because I won't care about getting fewer MPG than I did when I was traveling all the time.  I also think about gas mileage because, if I took off right now, I wouldn't have a way to support myself.  I'm just thinking ahead to make the most of what I'll have as I find new ways to support myself.  
I think that's why these vehicles amazed me.  They seem to be mini-fortresses that can take you anywhere you need to go.

 

[Jack]

Danny - Those are great points that I didn't think about.  Above everything else, as much as it's possible, reliability is definitely priority #1.  Since that's pretty much a crap shoot and depends on so many variables, I can only consider reliability through reputation.  

Gas mileage was #2 but I'll be analyzing it a little differently now due to the way you explained it.  It just might reorder a few priorities.  One thing though, your scenario doesn't account for vehicle reliability and repairs.  An older vehicle could easily end up costing more in repairs than a newer vehicle, which could make up the difference easily.  There's just no way to predict, or pre-judge, future repairs though.  Still, I appreciate the look through new eyes.  If nothing else, it helped me realize that no matter which van I end up with, the MPG will likely balance itself out with other priorities.

 

[DannyB1954]

If you can tolerate a smaller vehicle to start with, something like a Honda Odyssey may be worth looking into. They have been around for years so are priced right on the used market, they are pretty reliable, and get decent fuel economy. This is just one brand and model to look at.
The good thing about used is when you do resell to trade up to a larger vehicle, you can recoup most of your investment.
I did a lot of car camping in an AMC Jeep Eagle. I sometimes still miss it. It was a station wagon sort of thing. Today it would be called a SUV I suppose.